Discussion

Canadian Odyssey

My husband will be celebrating his 60th birthday this summer and when asked where he would like to go, he chose Toronto! SInce we are also celebrating our youngest child's college graduation and the last of the tuition bills, I have decided to expand the Toronto trip into a "Canadian Odyssey". We will spend one night in Niagara Falls, two in Toronto, one in Ottawa and two in Montreal. I am trying to come up with a variety of cuisines. We are looking for some fine dining, some local ambiance, and we are open for an adventure! This is what I am thinking so far: Niagara Falls/Terrapin Grille; Toronto/Lai Wah Heen (we are staying at the Renaissance to catch a Sox game..my husband is a Boston guy..and so I figured we could walk to Lai Wah Heen early and get back to the hotel to watch the game at 7. Would that work?); Ottawa/Wilfrid's; Montreal /Au Pied de Cochon(I guess I should go to another board for that). I am not "married" to the choices I have made so far. I will appreciate any help anyone can give me. I really want this to be a special trip!

You're going to get tons of responses regarding Toronto restaurants here, so I'll pipe in on your Montreal choices. I'd definitely recommend Au Pied de Cochon (my favourite dishes there are the Plogue a Champlain and the Duck in a Can). On a recent trip to Montreal, we discovered DNA, a fairly new restaurant in Old Montreal that was absolutely phenomenal, one of the best meals we've had in a long time. And they specialize in using seasonal, artisanal Canadian ingredients. I'd highly recommend it www.dnarestaurant.com/eng/acc/

Hi CY, I might be incorrect, but I thought I read from this chat that they we quitting the downtown location to concentrate on the Mountpleasant branch. But I might be totally wrong, if so I apologise! anyway I thought It was worth warning our Bostonian chum.

Yes, I am planning early because I have booked a room at the Renaissance the night the Red Sox are in town. I figured I would do my restaurant research early, reserve everything now and then just settle back and look forward to it all!

I have heard very mixed reviews on lai toh heen. Personally, I have not tried it yet. If you're looking for good dim sum, definitely have Lai Wah Heen. Though they are inconsistent at times, they are VERY good and creative when they are on their game. It also has good atmosphere and is close to you.

If Etobicoke (near the airport and on the way to Toronto from Niagara Falls) is on route, try out Grand Chinese Cuisine. They're also very good for dim sum in Toronto.

Also, if you go to Niagara, I would suggest staying in Niagara on the Lake, this place is nice, I haven't stayed there but we've been there for lunch, they have an awesome burger: http://www.vintage-hotels.com/niagara...

And a third recommendation. We strolled in for brunch and it was amazing. Lovely atmosphere, great service, and food was scrumptious and decadent. OK, maybe it's because I ordered foie gras for brunch but still, everything was delicious.